Eighteen years ago, longtime Boulder resident Bill Capsalis heard rumblings about the multimillion-dollar soy foods maker White Wave Inc. looking to relocate from Boulder to Broomfield, and he sought to do something to stop it.
Capsalis and a contingent of local leaders created the trade association Naturally Boulder to try to prevent the move and protect the city's status as a hub for natural products companies.
"A group of us got together and said, 'We don't want to see that happen,'" Capsalis said.
Ultimately, the group failed in its initial task. White Wave — widely credited for popularizing soymilk under its Silk brand — moved its headquarters. However, Naturally Boulder succeeded in bringing new natural foods companies into the city, Capsalis said.
The association now has 1,000 individual members, 110 sponsoring companies and works with 500 brands across Colorado. Of those, 70% of brands are in the food and beverage sector, while others produce vitamins, nutritional supplements and personal care items.
Boulder has become known for its natural food scene, which includes popular brands such as Justin's, Bhakti Chai and Bobo's Oat Bars, among others.
"We ended up being a magnet, attracting companies to come here and run a food business from Boulder," Capsalis said.
Naturally Boulder works with early-stage brands, meaning companies that have earned up to $5 million in sales and are trying to get a foothold in the industry. The association provides educational programs, networking opportunities and competitions, including its annual Pitch Slam.
Its 18th annual Pitch Slam will take place Thursday evening at the Boulder Jewish Community Center. Five burgeoning brands are expected to compete for a prize package that includes $3,000, a booth at the Natural Products Expo East in Pennsylvania this September and entry into Expo East's pitch competition.
The top three winners of the competition will split a package of business services from sponsors of Naturally Boulder, including financial and legal advice, graphic design and marketing.
The trajectories of winners over the past 18 years have varied, Capsalis said.
"It's a tough industry, and some people don't survive," Capsalis said. "We've had a few winners over the years that didn't go anywhere, or some that are still around but didn't grow. And then we've had a few that just take off."
One example of success was the most recent winner, Frescos Naturales, Capsalis said. Juan Ignacio Stewart founded Frescos Naturales in Boulder in 2020 to produce low-sugar agua frescas inspired by Stewart's childhood in Guatemala.
After winning Naturally Boulder's Pitch Slam, Stewart took third place in the pitch competition at Natural Products Expo East. On Jan. 20, he was featured on an episode of the ABC reality show, "Shark Tank," where he pitched his company to a panel of investors.
Stewart walked away from the experience with a deal from billionaire Daniel Lubetzky, the founder of KIND Snacks, who offered Stewart $130,000 in exchange for a 25% stake in his company.
Stewart said the Naturally Boulder competition "turbo-boosted" his growth by three to five years.
"Getting a booth at Natural Products Expo East and competing in the Expo East Pitch Slam was the cherry on top," Stewart said in a statement. "We won the ‘Audience Choice Award,’ and it put us on the radar of national chains and stores that we seek to grow into in 2023.”
Frescos Naturales is adding to Boulder's prominence as a natural foods hub, Capsalis said.
"We have a long legacy, probably 50 years or so, of healthy food innovation in Boulder now," he said.
The five brands that will compete Thursday for the prize package — and the opportunity to further that legacy — are: Hooch Booch, Peak State Coffee, Terraseed Multivitamins, Hazlo Elixir and QI Alchemy.
